When your writing a strength program for an athlete, there are several points I try to keep in mind and then many many thoughts I double check that with.
1. Stay Healthy. (this is your number one job, if an athlete comes to you for your help) If they can't compete, what is the point?
2. Improve performance for the sport. Great, you got your athlete to squat 500 lbs, did this increase his 5k time? I jest, but you get the picture.
Points to keep in mind that I tell athletes or remind myself. One work out will not make you, but one work out can break you.
You don't grow stronger lifting weights, you get stronger resting from lifting weights. Do you have enough recovery in their programs? What else do they have going on in their week or month? Travel, family, sickness are all variables that must be accounted for. Is it smart to have someone do a max effort squat after sitting in a plane for eight hours? Are you out thinking the plan? This isn't rocket science as many would have us believe, you get stronger a little by little, not with complex formulas that only 7th master Supertraining guru can decipher.
So these are a few thoughts and points I recheck when writing programs. Do you have any checks and balances? Lets hear them.
4 comments:
Not trying to cram too much in. It used to frustrate me that I couldn't do foamrolling, prehab work, strength training, and stretching all fully in one work out (you'd spend 3 hrs at the gym). I had to realize to just do little bits of all each session throughout the week and let consistency take care of the rest.
Furthermore, focusing on the basics. I have seen great results with just making sure I do push-ups, pull-ups, lunges, and pull throughs 3-4 times a week. I think I'll be full body training from now on.
Yea...I full heartedly agree. There is so much useful stuff that can be done, that if you do it all, you lose the training effect long term.
I think it's a wise move to do full body workouts, I'm a big believer.
I think the following can be replaced by PRECISE joint mobility work
1) foam rolling
2) activation work
3) static stretching
4) most prehab work
5) "balance" work
6) most advanced soft tissue work (unless very well done for recovery purpose).
Again, that does not mean the above are evil and should never be used (ok, maybe static stretching and foam rollers), but precise mobility work has a HUGE effect on the body and TISSUE.
Great post. I always ask coaches, are you trying to get them stronger in the weight room or be a better player on the field? They are NOT the same thing!! If they were, the strongest on the team would be the STARTERS and they very rarely are.
Extreme Athletic Performance is achieved in the brain/nervous system by a combination of inputs from 1) joints, 2) vision/eyes 3) vestibular/inner ear.
The EXPRESSION of this (output) is performance.
In short, if you can make someone stronger withOUT decreasing their movement quality it will dramatically increase the ability for positive transfer from the weight room to the playing field.
Rock on!
Mike T Nelson PhD(c)
Extreme Human Performance
How would you go about working with the inner ear/vestibular? What kind of benefits have you seen as far as improvements in sports? Would an athlete with a chronic ear infection be at a disadvantage? That would be a cool post Mike...hint...hint!
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